White Bean Soup with Bacon Recipe
White bean soup with bacon is a thick, hearty soup known from Polish homes and milk bars. A creamy bean broth is combined here with the aroma of smoked bacon, sausage, root vegetables and marjoram, creating a full, warming flavor.
This is one of the classic Polish “for several days” soups, often cooked in a large pot for a weekend or cold winter days. In many homes it replaces a two-course dinner because it combines filling beans, potatoes and cured meats in one dish.
This bean soup has a thick, creamy broth thanks to the beans and vegetables alone, without a roux. The strong accent of smoked bacon and sausage means that a portion with a slice of bread easily replaces a two-course meal. The soup improves in flavor after a night in the fridge, so it’s perfect for cooking ahead.
Why this version works
- Long soaking of the beans shortens the cooking time and improves their tenderness without them falling apart.
- Sautéing the bacon, sausage and onion builds a deep, smoky flavor without stock cubes.
- Root vegetables and potatoes naturally thicken the soup, so there’s no need to add flour.
- Adding marjoram at the end helps preserve its fresh, herbal aroma.
Chef's tips
If you like very thick soups, mash 2–3 tablespoons of beans with a fork at the end of cooking and stir them back into the pot – the soup will thicken without flour. It’s easy to miss the moment when the beans are tender but still hold their shape; when they start to split at the edges, lower the heat and stir more often. When reheating I always add a bit of water, because after a night in the fridge the consistency becomes almost like a stew.
How to serve
Serve in deep bowls with a thick slice of rye sourdough bread or simple garlic croutons. It pairs very well with a dill pickle or sauerkraut slaw, which will refresh the soup’s heavier character. It’s an ideal dinner for cold days when you prefer to cook once and eat for several days.
Watch out for
- Don’t salt the soup at the beginning – salty bacon and sausage can easily make the whole pot too salty.
- The beans should be almost tender before you add the vegetables; otherwise the vegetables will fall apart while the beans are still hard.
- Don’t burn the cured meats – dark, burnt bits will add bitterness to the entire soup.
Substitutions
- You can replace part of the bacon with lean smoked ham if you prefer a less fatty version.
- Instead of dried beans, use 2–3 cans of white beans, reducing the cooking time to about 30 minutes.
- You can partially replace the marjoram with thyme, adding it carefully because it has a stronger aroma.
Ingredients
- beans dried white (e.g. Jaś) - 300 g
- smoked bacon can be raw smoked or cooked smoked - 150 g
- country-style sausage for a meatless version omit the sausage and bacon and add more vegetables - 150 g
- carrot - 2 piece
- parsley root - 1 piece
- celeriac small piece - 0.25 piece
- potatoes medium - 3 piece
- onion medium - 1 piece
- garlic - 3 cloves
- bay leaf - 3 piece
- allspice berry - 5 piece
- dried marjoram ideally rubbed between your hands before adding - 2 teaspoons
- oil or lard - 1 tablespoon
- salt to taste, add towards the end of cooking
- pepper ground black, to taste
- water or light vegetable/meat stock - 2 l
Preparation
- Rinse the beans in a sieve, cover with plenty of cold water and leave to soak overnight (at least 8 hours). In the morning drain and rinse again – the beans should be clearly swollen and slightly lighter in color.
- Transfer the soaked beans to a large pot, pour in 2 l of fresh water, add the bay leaves and allspice berries. Bring to a boil, skim off the foam from the surface and cook over low heat, covered, for 45–60 minutes, until almost tender but still holding their shape.
- In the meantime, peel the carrot, parsley root, celeriac and potatoes. Cut the carrot, parsley root and celeriac into small cubes or half-moons, and the potatoes into larger cubes so they don’t fall apart too quickly during cooking.
- Cut the bacon and sausage into cubes or half-moons. Peel the onion and chop it finely; finely chop the garlic or press it through a garlic press just before frying so it doesn’t darken or lose aroma.
- Heat the oil or lard in a large pan over medium heat. Add the bacon and fry for 5–7 minutes until the fat renders and the edges of the bacon are clearly browned and crispy but not burnt.
- Add the sausage and fry for another 3–4 minutes, stirring, until lightly browned. The fat in the pan should be clear and smell pleasantly smoky, without dark, burnt bits.
- Add the onion to the bacon and sausage and fry for 3–5 minutes until it softens and becomes translucent with lightly golden edges. Finally add the garlic and fry for about 1 more minute, just until it becomes very fragrant.
- Add the chopped vegetables and the contents of the pan along with the rendered fat to the pot with the almost tender beans. Stir, bring to a gentle boil and cook over low heat for 25–30 minutes, until the beans and vegetables are soft and the soup has noticeably thickened.
- Towards the end of cooking, season the soup with salt, pepper and marjoram. Rub the marjoram between your hands over the pot to release its aroma. If the soup is too thick, add a little hot water and bring back to a boil until the consistency resembles a thick broth rather than a stew.
- Before serving, remove the bay leaves and allspice berries. Serve very hot, topped with an extra pinch of marjoram and accompanied by a slice of sourdough bread or simple garlic croutons.
Storage
Store the bean soup in the fridge for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months. After chilling it thickens a lot and the smoky flavor intensifies, so when reheating add a bit of water, bring to a boil and only then adjust the salt.
I most often cook this bean soup in a large pot on Friday evening so that on Saturday, after a whole day of errands, it only needs reheating. The next day it tastes even better because the beans and smoked meats have had time to meld.
